


I love you because I have to (There is no why about it)

by Librarian_Alexandria



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Royalty, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Enemies to Lovers, F/F, F/M, Gods are Royals, Jason Grace is a Good Friend, M/M, Minor Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson, Politics, Prince Nico di Angelo, Prince Percy Jackson, Rating May Change, Slow Burn, a little ooc, because its kind of spoilery?, characters have original surnames to fit the world but they're not OCs, full list of characters inside, full list of side pairings are inside, i haven't read the books in a good while, idk how yall do this tagging stuff its a CHORE
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-02
Updated: 2021-01-20
Packaged: 2021-03-04 21:27:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 14,342
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25033174
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Librarian_Alexandria/pseuds/Librarian_Alexandria
Summary: Prince Perseus is about to enter the world of politics, love and courting, with his first social season. At his side, Prince Jason, his best friend. At his other side, Prince Nico, whose family hasn't attended the social season for 20 years.Percy has a lot of feelings, but being a prince comes first, and being a person comes second.
Relationships: Nico di Angelo/Percy Jackson
Comments: 9
Kudos: 51





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> title from the song "Ghost Stories" by The Narcissist Cookbook

“I’m going to die of boredom there, I swear.”  
Percy was sprawled on his carpet, in a way that his friends would call 'typically dramatic'. Rachel had already called him that, in fact.  
“Weren’t you just rambling about how cool it will be to see Prince Jason again?” She asked, poking him in the ribs.  
“But I have to talk to soooo many people, and listen to all their stupid politics,” he groaned, swatting her hand.  
“You’re finally getting introduced! You get to start courting!” Grover offered.  
“Dad is going to make it no fun, I promise you that. It’s going to be just like those stuffy court dinners.”  
He had his eyes closed, but he could tell his friends were rolling their eyes.  
“Don’t be so-”  
“Dramatic,” Rachel finished Grover’s sentence with what he assumed was a grin. He could hear it in her voice.  
“Besides, you get to meet the di Angelos before anyone else! That’s gotta be cool, right?”  
Maybe there was some hope. The Grace family had always been close with the Jacksons, even if they were on opposite sides of the empire, but the di Angelo’s hadn’t attended social seasons since before Percy was born. Neither had some other queens, but they were childless, and didn’t need to introduce anyone. He’d heard that the eldest princess was already marrying age, and hadn’t been introduced. She wasn’t even courting informally, was the rumour.  
But they were coming in a few days, along with the Graces, including Percy’s favourite prince, Jason, to travel to the country estates.

“Yeah, I guess,” he said, but he was smiling. Rachel poked his dimple.  
“Flash these babies and the empire would be on its knees for you,” she teased.  
“Rachel, you’re turning him red,” Grover said, chuckling.

He spent most of the rest of the week trying to pack. Rachel and Grover were no help, Rachel suggesting he have an entirely new wardrobe imported from Parthenos and Paphos, and Grover suggested he take four outfits total.  
He ended up asking his mother for help.  
“Take what you need, I’m sure your father will have us stop in Paphos for finery. Remember, you won’t always be dancing or sitting through dinners, you need casual clothes too,” she explained, already rearranging his choices. A few pieces were thrown back into the closet, and a few more were added in their place. His mom was a godsend, truly.

The Grace family arrived first, judging by the overlapping of the loud, booming voices of his father and King Zeus. He practically sprinted down the stairs and crashed into Jason on the landing.  
“Percy!”  
“Jace!”  
“Man, I’ve missed you, did you hear dad actually sent me to that athlete’s training program he was threatening me with?”  
“Dude, my dad made me care for my own horse for a whole week to ‘learn responsibility’. As if Blackjack’s horse-smell wasn’t bad enough while I was riding him!”  
Jason was taller than last time, which was totally unfair.  
The unjustly-taller blond laughed and stepped back.  
“You were running down to see me, weren’t you, Jackson?” he asked, grinning.  
“Like you weren’t on your way to my bedroom yourself, Grace,” Percy retorted. Jason mock swooned.  
“Couldn’t help myself, you’re irresistible,” he said, and Percy gave him a playful shove.  
“C’mon, your dad will probably want to see me, scope out the competition and all,” he said, and started down the rest of the stairs.

In the hall, still having their numerous bags carried away by the staff, were the rest of the Graces. King Zeus, still talking animatedly with his father, Princess Thalia, looking bored as ever, and Queen Hera, trying to beat the record for most stiff conversation in the empire. His mom saw him and Jason rounding the corner and practically leapt away from Hera. Percy had to stifle a laugh.  
“Perseus, go say hello to the Graces, be polite. Hello Jason, I didn’t quite get to greet you with how fast you shot up those stairs. I hope you didn’t break anything, young man,” she said, but her eyes were warm and her mouth was fighting a fond smile. She was practically Jason’s mom too at this point.

“Perseus!”  
King Zeus had a very loud, deep voice. He was probably used to talking in the huge halls in Olympus. It hurt his head sometimes.  
“Hello, sir,” he said, receiving a hard pat on the shoulder.  
“Excited about your introduction? Jason’s been training hard for the games, but I’m sure your father had you working hard too, hm?”  
“Every day on the beach, sir.”  
Zeus nodded, and patted him again. He nearly winced.  
“Good man.”

“Race you to the cove?”  
“You’re on blondie!”  
They ended up tying, but Percy insisted it was only because there was a branch in his way. Once they were there, Jason immediately ran into the water, tossing his shirt off and throwing it onto the sand. Percy joined him a second later, dunking Jason’s head under the water.  
“No drowning me, Perce!” he said when he resurfaced, splashing him with his hands.  
Jason always seemed to love the beach, which Percy only understood once he’d had to spend more than a week in Olympus. Nothing could compare to the hot sand under your feet and the cool water surrounding you.

“What do you think about the di Angelos?” he asked after a while. Jason chewed the inside of his cheek. He did that when he was thinking, and it made Percy feel bad for him whenever he drank lemonade.  
“Dunno yet. Dad says King Hades never really stopped communication or trade, he just stopped coming to the socials when Princess Bianca was born, so it’s not like he turned his back on the empire,” Jason said, typically political for an Olympian. Percy rolled his eyes.  
“What about the fact that she’s almost 20 and not even introduced yet? Even if you’re courting outside the royals, you still need an introduction.”  
Jason frowned.  
“Not officially. She could be married, actually, if it was international, and the rest of us wouldn’t have to know.”  
Percy was sure his eyes conveyed the emotion he was feeling, which was scandalized. Was scandalized an emotion? He sure was feeling it, so it had to be. What defined an emotion? He found himself frowning as well, until he heard a burst of laughter next to him.  
“Where’d your mind take you this time?” he asked, flicking Percy’s temple playfully.  
“Doesn’t matter, somewhere stupid. There’s no way she’s married without an introduction. Doesn’t matter if it’s allowed, she’d never be taken seriously.”  
Jason half shrugged, half nodded. Then he dunked Percy’s head under, and sped off.  
“You better swim Grace, there’s no way you’re winning this in my home turf!”

It was dark when they finally headed home, skin reddened by the sun and hair practically stiff with salt. They slipped inside, hoping to change before dinner. Jason’s thing would have already been moved to the guest room next to Percy’s, so there’d be no delay there.  
But when they stepped into the hall, it was bustling with staff again, and in the middle of it all was both their families, greeting the newcomers.  
“There they are, so sorry Hades, Perseus just has to spend the day in the water, can’t get him out! Boys! Come greet the di Angelos!”

Full list of [characters](https://librarian-alexandria.tumblr.com/post/622537501259841536/overview-of-characters-in-the-royalau-fic), [pairings](https://librarian-alexandria.tumblr.com/post/622540224888717313/all-pairings-in-the-royalau-possible-spoilers), and brief [political/world overview](https://librarian-alexandria.tumblr.com/post/622543610910588928/overview-world-from-i-love-you-because-i-have) for those who want it! [links take you to Tumblr]


	2. Chapter 2

The di Angelos were quieter than the royals Percy knew. The eldest, Princess Bianca, stood silently next to her father and two younger siblings, who he guessed were Prince Nico and Princess Hazel. Bianca looked like her father, and her brother looked like her, and yet, Nico didn’t look like the King. It was strange. Then there was the youngest, Princess Hazel, who looked nothing like any of them.   
Except for her eyes, he noticed, they looked just like King Hades’ eyes.   
“King Hades, Queen Persephone, my son Prince Perseus,” his father said, gesturing with his hand at Percy, who realized with a flush of embarrassment that he was dressed in casual beachwear. The Jacksons didn’t really dress up for the Graces at this point, but the di Angelos had never seen him before. What would they think of him? He could feel the blush creeping further down his neck. One glance out of the corner of his eye and he could see Jason felt the same.  
“King Hades, Queen Persephone, welcome from your journey,” he said, bowing his head. They nodded in acknowledgement.   
Jason was next, pushed forward slightly by Zeus, and almost stuttered out his greeting. 

Their parents all began talking again, the formality over, and the eldest di Angelo princess awkwardly stepped toward Jason and Percy.   
“I am Princess Bianca, these are my siblings Prince Nico and Princess Hazel. I have met your sister, Prince Jason, and your siblings, Prince Perseus.”  
She was very formal, but he could see her hand fiddling with her dress. He felt bad, she was just nervous. Hell, he was nervous and this was his house.   
“Welcome from your journey, Princess Bianca. We don’t have to be so formal outside of the official stuff, you know?” he offered, putting on his best ‘you-seem-cool-please-relax’ smile. It seemed to work.   
She smiled, and her sister stepped forward, also smiling.   
“I’m Hazel! Prince Tyson said I could go see the horses with him, but I had to wait for you and Prince Jason. Can I go see them now?”  
Percy smiled even wider. She was so sweet.   
“Of course, I’ll get him for you and he can take you to the paddocks, sound good?”  
“Sounds great!” she said, and her eyes seemed to sparkle. Not that he could blame her, Helike had the most beautiful horse breeds in the entire empire. 

He called over a page boy and asked him to fetch Tyson, and turned expectantly to the di Angelo prince. All the others warmed up to him in seconds, and he was starting to feel a bit unsure at the way that Prince Nico was still staring stiffly ahead of him.   
He elbowed Jason, who was trying to loosen his salt-stiffened hair with his fingers. Jason caught on immediately, thank goodness for that.   
“Can we do anything for your brother too, Hazel?” he asked.   
Smart. Not calling him out entirely but still acknowledging him. Percy would have just said something along the lines of “What’s up with you?” and then dealt with the follow-up.   
“My brother should speak for himself,” Bianca interrupted, giving Nico a look that he had seen Thalia give Jason. Not a Thalia thing then, just an older sister thing.   
“I am fine. I would like to refresh before dinner, if you would excuse me,” he said, barely meeting Percy’s eye. In fact, Percy was pretty sure Nico was staring at a spot just next to his head, just to avoid looking at him properly. Percy was about to say something when Jason answered.   
“Of course, I think you could all use some rest after your journey.”  
Prince Nico just nodded and walked away, a valet quickly leading him to his room upstairs.   
Bianca rolled her eyes, smiling sheepishly.   
“I am sorry for his behaviour, he is usually not so… sullen,” she said.   
Percy shrugged, trying to look indifferent. Knowing he wasn’t always like that, made it kinda sting. 

They spoke for a little bit longer, as Tyson came to show Hazel to the horses, until Jason finally caved and suggested they all get changed for dinner.   
Bianca went the same way as Nico, and Jason and Percy went up to their own rooms. Halfway up the landing, Percy couldn’t help himself.   
“Nico was totally weird, right?”  
Jason paused.   
“He was super formal the whole time. And he wouldn’t look at you properly. Maybe he was offended at the familiarity? Some kingdoms are pretty strict with that stuff.”  
Percy shook his head.   
“Nah, Princess Bianca and Princess Hazel were fine with it.”  
Jason shrugged.   
“Then I don’t know, man. Stop stressing so much.”

Dinner wasn’t tense, for the most part. The three kings spoke to each other like brothers, and while Hera and his mom weren’t exactly bonding, Queen Persephone had them both chatting and laughing. Jason’s older sister Thalia had immediately started talking politics and courting and country estate activities with Bianca, who was completely entranced by her, it seemed. Tyson, Hazel and Estelle were sitting at their own table, where just last year Jason and Percy had sat too. Now they were sitting with their parents, with the politically involved and soon to be courted and it was like a weird dream.   
He tried to focus on the conversations again. 

After dinner, he and Jason went back to the beach. They tried to invite the di Angelos, but Thalia was already dragging Bianca away, probably to talk her ear off with gossip she called “complex inter-kingdom affairs, you wouldn’t get it, Percy”, and Tyson and Estelle were listening to Hazel tell stories about Asphodel. And Nico, well, he just mumbled something about being tired and practically bolted.   
Percy was really starting to think he’d done something wrong.   
“Do you think you’ll start courting right away?” Jason, as always, managed to pull his mind away from its eternal spiralling.   
“Do you?”  
Jason nodded.   
“My dad says it’s the best way to find a good match, first for the kingdom and then for myself. Like him and Hera, and my mom.”  
“Have anyone in mind?” Percy asked, wiggling his eyebrows. Teasing Jason was the best, because he always fell for it.   
“Uh, well I met a girl in Cyllenius while I was training and I, uh, she was-”  
“God, Grace, try not to choke, were you this spluttery when you spoke to her?”   
Jason was beet red at this point, and Percy found it hilarious.   
“What about you Perce?” he shot back.  
“Not sure yet. My mom thinks I should either get someone who likes all the fancy ruling stuff, or see if Tyson or Estelle wants to take over as heir.”  
He’d thought about it a lot. Would he take a co-ruler and let them both live their own lives? Would he marry his queen? These days, he liked the idea of marrying his queen less and less.   
He wasn’t stupid. He was 17, he knew he had to produce heirs if he were to take over from his father. Their creation, however, didn’t really appeal to him.   
But it was kids or give up the claim. And he didn’t want Tyson to face the same ultimatum, let alone Estelle. He’d figure it out.   
He had to.


	3. Chapter 3

They left the next morning. The train would take them through Paphos, where they would be expected to play dress up and buy pretty things. Percy wasn’t sure he was looking forward to that, considering his mother would insist on buying him all sorts of trinkets that he’d be forced to wear to functions. He was going miss having Tyson and Estelle around to take their share of the mothering. (Though secretly he loved having her undivided attention.)  
Then, they’d be at the country estates. Thalia had told him and Jason all about it, how lovely and wonderful and insanely boring they’d find it. Jason, maybe not. He liked all that dull talking and debating and bequeathing and crap.   
They’d only been travelling for an hour and Percy was already bored and spiralling. He poked Jason, who had the audacity to be able to sleep on trains. He grunted, but didn’t wake up. Thalia had already moved to Bianca and Nico’s compartment, and Percy couldn’t blame her. She’d always had to hang out with him and Jason, or no one. It was probably nice to have a friend.   
He started balancing Jason’s pens on his friend’s head. He’d wake up eventually. 

Before he did, someone knocked on the compartment door and stepped in.   
“Thalia and Bianca are being really loud and they said you and Jason were probably asleep,” Nico said, as if that clarified anything. No, it did. Right? He came here to nap, probably. Right? Nico’s face looked like a painting. It had practically no emotion on it. It didn’t look naturally stoic though, Like King Zeus and Queen Hera often looked.   
“Uh, Jason is asleep. I can’t sleep on trains,” Percy said, “You came here to nap too?”  
He shook his head. He looked a little unwell, a lot like when Jason had heatstroke. Very wobbly, and flushed.  
“I couldn’t concentrate on my book,” he mumbled.   
“Are you okay?”   
Nico finally showed some feeling, namely annoyance.   
“‘M fine! Maybe I should go-”  
“No, no, I’m sorry, I won’t disturb you,” Percy insisted, feeling equal parts guilty and fed up. This dude was so hard to read. He acted all distant and hoity-toity, probably because he thought he was better than them, or something. He had something else, though, that made Percy desperately want to know him. He didn’t have to know a jerk, though.   
Percy went back to balancing things on Jason. He’d moved on to the strawberries his mother had had brought to them. So far, he’d placed a strawberry over one of Jason’s eyes, and one on his ear.   
Jason twitched, and the piece of fruit rolled from his eye to the side of his nose. It teetered precariously for a moment. Percy found himself holding his breath.   
The strawberry was now perched right on the edge of Jason’s nose. Percy let out a whoop without even thinking about it, and Jason shot up with a yelp. Strawberries and pens clattered onto the floor.   
He heard a snort from the corner, and caught a glimpse of Nico chuckling over the top of his book. He ducked back behind it when he saw Percy.   
“Dude, Thalia got small,” Jason muttered, still waking up. Percy couldn’t help the laugh the burst out of him.   
“Thalia went to go make a ruckus with Bianca. That’s Nico,” he said, starting to clean up the mess he’d made by piling things on Jason.   
“How far are we?” Jason asked.   
“We still have five and a half hours,” came Nico’s voice from behind his book. Jason glared at Percy, who shrugged.   
“Didn’t mean to wake you. Must be fate telling you it’s unfair to let you sleep while I suffer alone,” he said, grinning. Jason rolled his eyes and lay down again.   
“If you’re so lonely, talk to Nico. Quietly. Wake me up in Paphos,” he grumbled.  
Great, there was no way Nico was going to talk to him. Maybe he’d see if he could try to read one of Jason’s boring books. He was honestly just showing off by bringing them, considering he wasn’t even going to read them on the train. There was one on the family trees of the primary rulers, which hopefully had pictures and cool diagrams. Well, nothing to lose. 

“Jas-ooon… Jaaay-son….”  
The book turned out to be okay, but reading on the road made him feel nauseous. He’d gone back to trying to wake Jason, without actually waking him. An additional bonus was watching Nico grow more and more annoyed with him but too set on ignoring him to say anything. He wondered who would crack first.   
“For God’s sake, Perseus, will you shut it?”  
And the winner was.. Nico!   
He grinned, looking over to see Nico finally emerge from behind his book to glare at him.   
“Shan’t. I’m bored.”   
Nico rolled his eyes and sighed loudly.   
“Aren’t you done with that book yet?” Percy asked. It had been at least three hours.   
“I literally just started,” he replied, and Percy noticed the two stacks of books, one on the table and one next to Nico.   
“Woah, you’ve read all of those already? How has your brain not melted?”   
That earned him a smile. Nico’s face was very nice to look at when he smiled. Even when he had that you’re-an-idiot-stop-tormenting-Jason look. Most of the time, actually.   
But he was still a jerk, though, right? He was still acting all superior or something. A pretty jerk, then. Was he jealous of Nico?   
“Perseus?”  
“Hm?”  
Nico was really good at looking annoyed.   
“You didn’t hear a word I said, did you?”  
“Nope,” Percy said, popping the ‘p’ with a lazy smile. This was way more fun than messing with Jason or trying to read. “And don’t call me that.”  
“Call you what?”  
“Perseus. It’s too posh. It’s just Percy.”  
One day, Percy was sure, Nico’s eyes would get stuck mid-roll.   
“Whatever.”  
Nico disappeared behind his book again.   
Percy leaned forward and rested his elbows on the table.   
“You ever been to Paphos?” he asked.   
Silence.   
“Oh c’mon, we’re bonding!” he tried, tapping Nico’s shin with his foot. Nico kicked him.   
“Never been. Never been out of Asphodel,” he said quietly, still not showing his face.   
“What? How? I mean, I haven’t been everywhere but you gotta go somewhere, right? What about schools?”   
Nico finally gave in and placed the book down on the seat next to him.   
“I just didn’t, okay? My dad had tutors for us. We didn’t need to go anywhere.”  
Percy had the feeling he’d poked a sore spot.   
“Well, you’re gonna love it. I can’t wait to see the Peithos again, but I think we’ll only see them at the estates. Paphos is lovely though-”  
He noticed Nico starting to smile again while he rambled. At least he was good at that. And Paphos was easy to ramble about. Somehow, the kingdom seemed to be covered in a rosy film, like a mid-afternoon daydream. Princess Silena had helped him come up with that particular comparison.   
“-But I think you’ll like them, Drew’s getting introduced as well this year.”   
The longer he talked, the longer he ended up staring at Nico’s face. The di Angelo prince looked younger than him and Jason, but not by much. Once he stopped scowling, Percy could actually see his eyes. He didn’t have his father’s eyes, like Princess Hazel did. No, they were a dark brown, and seemed to brighten the more he talked about Paphos. Must be looking forward to it, he guessed.   
The rest of the ride was nice. It was… comfortable.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh wow, i thought this was slow burn? they're friends already??   
> wait for it :)


	4. Chapter 4

Paphos ended up being brief, especially since Queen Aphrodite and the rest of the Peithos family had already started their own journey to the country estates. His mom and Jason went with him to the market, where he quickly fell in love with almost everything he saw. Garments, headpieces, perfumes and jewellery that all demanded to be bought, worn, or wrapped up and presented as courting gifts.  
And he loved spending time with his mother. They didn’t often get to hang out with just the two of them. Jason didn’t count, he was basically Percy’s mom friend himself, and like another son to his actual mother. He loved his siblings, but it wasn’t wrong to want her attention sometimes. Like now.  
“Percy, you are just going to love it, I promise,” she told him while they were eating mussels at a small market stall. Paphos had the best shellfish.  
“You’re going to make so many new friends, at the very least.”  
He hoped she was right. Nico seemed to be the first example of that. 

But when they walked back to their compartment, Nico took his books and was clearly headed back to Bianca’s compartment.  
“Aren’t you gonna stay? It’s only an hour or something, we’re almost there?”  
Jason was practically already passed out. Maybe it was a blessing he received as a baby. “You shall fall asleep on any moving vehicle the minute you are inside.” Sounded about right.  
Nico didn’t look up.  
“Exactly. I can put up with Bee and Princess Thalia for that long.”  
Percy was confused for sure. Nico was back to being a condescending dick, like their two hours of conversation hadn’t even happened.  
“Did you not like Paphos? I’m sorry I hyped it up so much but I really thought you would…”  
Nico shook his head and stepped toward the door.  
“Whatever, Perseus. I’ll see you at dinner when we’re there.” 

He didn’t even have the motivation to pester Jason. He just stewed in various thought-soups, as he liked to imagine them. They were all different, but just like real soup, they all sucked and made his stomach hurt. The sun was setting when they arrived, and they were given an hour to settle before dinner. He spent the majority of that hour staring dejectedly at his still packed trunks. After showering and getting changed, there were still 40 minutes of absolute nothing and he felt like he was still on the train.  
The room was nice, he recognised his parents’ design choices from their own home, and it made him feel more at ease. But it was still distinctly different, and almost… empty. It didn’t even feel like a guest room in someone else’s house, like when his family stayed in Olympus with the Graces.  
Dinner was quiet, everyone was just too worn out from travelling to talk. The excitement from the day before had worn off, and the excitement for the social season hadn’t quite set in yet.  
He and Jason sat together on Percy’s balcony afterwards. Jason was usually nearby when their families were together, the furthest being down the hall, but the country estate was separated by family. Even if the Graces, Jacksons and di Angelos shared one estate, they practically stayed in their own houses, only connected by the central dining hall.  
“I’m nervous,” he admitted, sitting with his legs between the balustrades, swinging them back and forth against the concrete. Jason didn’t say anything, but he offered Percy a reassuring smile. They weren’t that great at all the mushy comfort stuff.  
“Are you?” he asked.  
Jason shrugged. Typical.  
“Not sure yet. I mean, it’s just dancing, right?”  
Percy groaned, dropping his head against the bannister.  
“Not about the dancing, idiot. About the whole, you know, courting and marrying and ruling shit. It’s all just so… real now.”  
Jason chewed his lip. Clearly his cheeks had already been bitten to shreds over the last few days. Jason was just as nervous as he was, even if he didn’t admit it.  
“Thalia’s gonna pass the heirdom to me,” he said. Percy tried to read his expression, but it was too dark. Jason’s tone didn’t give him any hints either.  
“And?”  
Jason was going to bite his lip off if he carried on like that.  
“I’m gonna accept it. She’s really sure Luke’s going to accept her offer of co-ruling, and I know he’d give up his position to be with her, just like she’s doing, but I don’t think his brothers are going to want to take over. I know them, and I know Luke, and I know Thalia, and it’s the best option. Me, I mean.”  
Jason had a way of not only making you feel sympathetic to him, but also crappy about yourself for not being so perfect. He didn’t do it on purpose, but still.  
“But do you want it?”  
Jason shrugged again.  
“Does it matter?”

Jason went back to his room, leaving Percy alone with his thoughts. The constant nagging in the back of his brain, that never left him alone. He tried to focus on the positive. Tomorrow night, he would attend the introductees ball, with Jason and Nico. Drew would be there, so at least he had someone to introduce Jason to. He preferred her older sisters, but Drew was alright. She could come off as cold, or arrogant, but she was just used to competing for attention with her sisters, even if it wasn't intentional. They’d ended up having a bit of a heart to heart the last time the Jacksons were in Paphos, that whole it’s-easier-to-tell-secrets-to-strangers thing, since they didn’t really know each other. He hadn't really seen her since then. He hadn’t seen Silena or Piper either, but they weren’t going to be at the first ball. No, they were already introduced, the Peithos family tended to introduce early, at 15 instead of 16 and 17. Piper was a year younger than him, and yet she’d been introduced last year while he was stuck at home. And Silena was already engaged. The pit in his stomach widened at the thought of engagements and courting. He was so looking forward to it, and yet, the idea of courting and marrying and producing heirs with a queen at his side… it was just off-putting.  
His mind wandered further.  
What if he courted Drew? She knew him, he knew her, maybe it would make it less awkward. He tried to imagine it, walking along the beach with her and placing a kiss on her lips like he’d seen Silena’s betrothed do when they were in Helike. His face scrunched in disgust before he could stop himself. Mabe Drew was too much like a younger sister? No, that wasn’t it…  
His mind wandered even further.  
Jason would probably have no problem courting. He was a sucker for all that fancy wooing business. Nico would probably be good at it too. He would be so formal and cautious and buy his suitress gifts and specialties from his kingdom. Maybe he’d take her there after the social season, to show her everything in Asphodel, and take her to all his childhood places. Favourite restaurants, forest clearings. He’d probably be slow to make it physical, starting with a kiss on the hand, then maybe an arm around the waist, then… well, he would take it slow, that’s what he was thinking about. It sounded nice. It sounded really nice. Nico was probably really good at courting, way better than Percy was. Another thing for him to feel inferior about, and his mind wouldn’t stop taunting him with images of how amazing Nico was.  
He fell asleep eventually, still thinking about the di Angelo prince.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you know that totally heterosexual jealousy thing you do where you imagine how your rival would date you? yeah me neither


	5. Chapter 5

The next day was a blur of fussing. Thalia had insisted on helping both Jason and Percy because he “didn’t have an older sister to keep his ego in check”, and along with Sally and Hera, he and Jason had been decorated like a centrepiece on a feast table. Sally had convinced Percy to let her braid short strings of pearls and seashells in his hair, to frame his face, and Jason had somehow been coaxed into wearing a headpiece made of carved pieces of ibex horn, and wrapped in loose golden threads. He had to admit, it looked pretty cool.  
He had the traditional Helike attire on, with a long cloak that looked a little bit like a waterfall, or a wave, since the bottom half was embroidered with white and silver and bunched with ribbons and pieces of sun-whitetened shells. He’d seen it before, for fittings, but it felt… different now. It felt exciting, and fun. His mother smiled when he said it out loud, and it made Percy feel even better. He was ready. 

He stepped into the ballroom, and the swooping feeling in his stomach told him he was in fact, not ready.  
The first person Percy noticed was Princess Drew, considering she was the only one he recognised. He gave her a short wave, which she returned. Next to him, he heard Jason gasp.  
“That’s just Drew, Jace, relax,” he said, but Jason was staring right past the Paphian. On her left were two more introductees, dressed in scarlet and purple. A tall, darker girl with a long braid, and a shorter but certainly bulkier prince beside her. Both their faces flashed with recognition when they saw Jason.  
Percy felt himself getting pulled along as they crossed the hall.  
“Princess Reyna! Prince Frank! Allow me to introduce Prince Perseus, from Helike,” he said when they were standing in front of them. They nodded.  
“Prince Perseus, allow me to introduce Princess Reyna and Prince Frank, from Thereitas.”  
Percy’s turn to nod. Jason grinned, placing a hand on Prince Frank’s shoulder.  
“Nice haircut, man,” he said. Princess Reyna offered Percy a cordial handshake.  
“Do you know anyone else here?” she asked, not in a nervous way though. She seemed to be entirely in control and it made Percy feel more nervous if possible. Luckily Prince Frank seemed to share his nervousness, the way he was tugging at his shirt seams.  
“I know Princess Drew from Paphos, if you would like an introduction?”  
Reyna nodded.  
“I’m sure that could be beneficial. In a moment though, I would like to speak to Jason. After you introduce me, I could introduce you to the Princess of Parthenos?” she offered. Then she turned to Jason, and broke her ruse of I’m-super-stoic-and-formal with a smile.  
“You’ve gotten taller since I last saw you,” she said, and Jason- wow, Jason blushed. Was this the girl from training? He was so going to bring this up later.  
“You’re Percy, then?” the guy, Frank, asked. Percy nodded.  
“Jason told me about you when we were in Cyllenius together. It’s nice to put a face to the name. You’re King Poseidon’s heir?”  
Percy felt his face twist subconsciously. He tried to smile again.  
“Yeah, I mean, for now. My siblings might want to take over from me eventually, though I doubt it,” he said, trying to remain casual. The anxiety surrounding his duty as heir had flared spectacularly since arriving.  
Frank looked sympathetic.  
“My older sister made sure I didn’t have to worry about that. Can’t imagine the kind of pressure you feel,” he said, and it felt like he meant it. He shrugged, feeling a little awkward. Princess Reyna seemed to spot someone behind them, and waved. Percy turned around, catching sight of a curly-haired blonde dressed in a shimmering grey fabric. It looked like it should be see-through, but it acted almost like a mirror, reflecting the scenery and making the wearer almost disappear. It had to be Parthenian, only their weavers could make something like that. He found himself impressed and slightly jealous.  
“Princess Annabeth, allow me to introduce Prince Jason of Olympus and Prince Perseus of Helike,” Reyna said smoothly. She really had this whole formality thing down.  
“Prince Jason, Prince Perseus, allow me to introduce Princess Annabeth of Parthenos.”  
Princess Annabeth smiled and bowed her head. She had a look in her eye, like she was sizing them all up and finding their weaknesses. But in a respectful way.  
“You’re friends of Reyna?” she asked.  
“I am, I mean, kind of, we met,” Jason stuttered, and Rena cut him off.  
“Prince Jason is a friend of mine, and Prince Perseus is a friend of his.”  
Annabeth smiled at him.  
Since Reyna had now introduced him to Annabeth, he figured he’d keep his end of the bargain. He caught sight of Drew standing a bit awkwardly and waved her over, turning to his own circle of princes and princesses.  
“Allow me to introduce Princess Drew of Paphos to you all,” he said as she walked up to them.  
“Princess Drew, allow me to introduce Prince Jason of Olympus, Princess Reyna and Prince Frank of Thereitas, and Princess Annabeth of Parthenos.” As they mentioned, they bowed their heads. Drew immediately stepped towards Jason.  
“As kingdoms on either side of the empire, our union would make a strong alliance,” she said, presenting her hand, which Jason stiffly shook, ignoring the clear invitation to kiss it.  
The conversation seemed to rise at this point, as everyone had sort of been introduced to a group of people. He zoned out of Annabeth and Reyna’s discussion about which military strategy was best suited for whatever latest excursion their kingdoms had planned, and spotted Nico and Bianca across the hall. They were standing with another group, and Nico was talking to a blond dressed in bright yellows and light greens, no doubt from Pythios. He felt... Well, he definitely felt something. And he didn’t like it. The blond was practically hanging off of every word Nico was saying. Typical, of course they were obsessed with him. 

The music started, light and easy. Drew looked at Jason expectantly, and Jason looked at Reyna helplessly. Reyna seemed to give him a look that, to Percy at least, said: “Get yourself out of this mess, chump, I’m not helping you.”  
Annabeth held out her hand.  
“Want to dance?” she asked, a glint in her eye that made her look a little bit dangerous. Percy nodded.  
As they stepped away from the others and into the centre of the ballroom, Annabeth took charge entirely.  
“Put your hand on my waist and follow my lead.”  
“I know how to dance,” Percy retorted, but put his hand on her waist. Annabeth rolled her eyes.  
“I want to speak to you, and you don’t strike me as a good multitasker,” she said, moving them across the room.  
Percy raised his brows, but decided not to say anything. Better to let her explain herself.  
“You’re one of my prospects. I want it to be clear and straightforward that I will be courting you this season. And, as I will be courting my other prospects, I expect you to do the same.”  
She had a very determined look on her face, but Percy could sense a little bit of hesitation in her voice. She’d clearly been planning this speech for her various suitors. It was a bit endearing, he wouldn’t deny, and it made him feel a bit better. At least she had a plan, right?  
“Who are your other prospects?”  
Annabeth gave him a look.  
“None of your business,” she said, but it wasn’t malicious.  
As they danced their way back to the side of the hall, Percy caught sight of Nico. He wasn’t dancing, instead, he was staring, no, almost glaring at him and Annabeth. The music stopped, a change between songs, and Annabeth stepped back cordially. She gave him a quick smile, and started to find the next partner, no doubt following a strict schedule. She seemed like the kind of girl to have an itinerary for a ball.  
The music started up again, and Percy decided to sit it out. As he was moving out of the way, he saw Annabeth’s next partner. It was Nico.  
Well, that definitely explained all the glaring, Nico was planning to court Annabeth. Of course he was. Every time he had something, Nico one-upped him. 

And of course Annabeth would choose him, eventually, because Nico was smarter, and better at politics, and he could dance really well, and his Asphodelian robes looked so good on him. Of course Annabeth would choose him. That’s what he was worried about, right? She was a good prospect for him. She would make a good ruler, a good queen.  
Somehow, he didn’t really believe himself, and he couldn’t figure out why.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> uh okay so i actaully have the whole thing planned out now and I promise it wont be more than 25 chapters. also, I think I'm going to start making the chapters longer? idk I'm doing my best I'm not good at multi-chapters yet


	6. Chapter 6

In theory, he knew how the social season would go. A ball, a dinner, a few days of free roam, rinse and repeat. But it was so much more complicated. And boring.  
“Tonight, our tri-estate will have a dinner with another tri-estate, and then again after the Prospect’s Ball, and then again after the Empire Ball, and at the end of the season, there will be a feast for all the families attending. Our tri-estate is dining with Queen Athena, Queen Artemis, King Apollo and King Ares first, and the other tri-estates will have their own… This is important, you need to be listening.”  
“Huh?” His mother’s hand was on his arm, giving him a little shake.   
“Can you pay attention, Percy? I know it’s boring, but you need to know what’s happening,” she said, and Percy felt a bit embarrassed. He’d completely started daydreaming after the first bit of information.  
“Sorry, mom.”  
But she just smiled, and shook her head, like she was saying “oh, this kid!”. She did it a lot, and his father thought it was the “only appropriate response” to Percy’s “latest mishap”.  
She brushed a piece of his hair away from his eyes.   
“Percy, you know you don’t have to put so much pressure on yourself?”  
“What happens at the dinner?” he asked. He’d already been lectured by Jason about being too tightly strung. Coming from Jason, of all people. 

As it turned out, he had every reason to stress, considering that Annabeth would be there, along with her mother, and the introductee from Pythios that fawned over Nico. He’d probably manage to charm the whole table.   
That, and he’d have to meet a whole bunch of kings and queens, which just sounded boring and overly formal.   
At least Jason had the decency to be nervous as well. 

“Reyna’s going to be there! And my sister! She’s going to embarrass me so much, you have no idea!”  
They were in Jason’s room this time, figuring out the best outfits to wear to dinner, as well as venting to each other about how utterly screwed they were.   
“Well, Nico’s probably going to have fights over who gets to sit next to him! Annabeth’s considering him, the prince from Pythios has already befriended him, there’s no way anyone would look twice at me next to him! And no doubt, he’s got amazing manners, and is super polite, and he’ll probably make all the kings and queens at the table coo over him with those stupid big brown eyes he’s always using to charm people!”  
Percy was pacing, and only stopped when he caught sight of Jason’s face. He looked smug, but also confused and teasing, it was a classic, unreadable Jason Look.   
“What?”  
Jason put his hands up defensively.   
“I didn’t say anything. Go on about his charming eyes and impeccable manners,” he said, pulling on a shoe. Percy rolled his eyes. At least he’d have Jason on his side that night. 

However, the dinner itself was quite boring, the older royals just talking amongst themselves and the newly introduced awkwardly trying to start conversations.   
His mom had explained that these dinners were more about social interaction than decorum, and it would be a bit different than usual court dinners. Well, she got that right. Instead of sitting at a large table and talking to your neighbour, you were expected to “mill about” as his mom had put it, eating small portions and filling up your plate every once in a while. 

He was currently sitting in a bench circle with Princess Annabeth, who he was trying to speak with, Princess Bianca and Princess Thalia, and two other girls he didn’t recognise entirely. One of them he had seen talking to Bianca at the ball, and her clothes indicated she was from Delias. The other he assumed was the older sister Prince Frank had told him about.   
The four of them seemed to be having a great time.   
“Erm, I was wondering if you’d like to go on a walk together tomorrow? So we can get to know each other without so many people around us,” he tried, poking a piece of chicken on his plate dejectedly. He should have asked Thalia for courting tips, or maybe even his mom.   
Annabeth cocked her head, a look he was starting to recognise as her making a decision.   
“Alright. I’m guessing you’ll want a staff chaperone and not a peer chaperone?” she asked, and Percy’s brain mentally high fived him. He nodded.   
That’s when Nico arrived, with his Pythian blond in tow, along with an older Pythian girl. They sat down between the others, and Bianca and Nico started making introductions.   
He felt a bit miffed at losing his chance to talk to Annabeth, but it was a coincidence, right? He thought so, at least until he caught Nico’s side-eye. He didn’t at all seem happy that Annabeth was sitting so close to him, but he didn’t exactly engage with her. Great, he was satisfied with simply stealing everyone’s attention and didn’t have the guts to make a move. 

After a while, he ended up migrating to where Jason was sitting, dropping down next to him in one slightly wobbly movement.   
“Perce!” Jason said, clapping him on the shoulder. This group was considerably smaller, only consisting of Jason and his new friends from Thereitas. Reyna was sitting at his other side, and Frank was roughly opposite them. They both smiled when they saw him.   
It was nice after that, hearing stories about Jason from training and sibling-like banter between Reyna and Frank. He’d learned that their parents, Frank’s dad and Reyna’s mom, were co-rulers, but Reyna’s mother had territories outside the empire that Reyna was heir to. They’d grown up as siblings for most of their lives, but Reyna joked that she’d never be as real as Frank’s blood sister. It was the same type of jokey deflection Percy sometimes used, and it made him feel a twang of sympathy for her. 

And then it was over, and everyone was saying their goodbyes. As Percy walked up to Annabeth, Nico practically cut him off, escorting Annabeth to her mother as Annabeth laughed and most likely called him a charmer or a gentleman. God, that prince infuriated him.   
He complained about it to Jason later that evening, once again pacing around his friend’s room. Jason was lying across the foot of his bed, half listening.   
“I’ll give her a dagger,” he said suddenly, bolting upright.   
“Huh?”  
“Princess Reyna, we’re going on a small hunt together tomorrow, with Frank of course, and I want to give her a dagger, you know, as a courting gift. What do you think? Too formal? Maybe a necklace is better…. No, I think she’ll like a dagger… I have that one with the handle carvings…”  
He’d stopped explaining and started rambling to himself. Percy snorted, which drew his friend’s attention again.   
“What?” he said, crossing his arms. He looked, as Thalia so nicely put it, “in a huff”.   
“Nothing, you just seem super invested in her and you hardly know her,” he said, sitting down next to Jason.   
“Well, that’s just called attraction. And affection. I like her, it’s to be expected.”   
Percy frowned.   
“You don’t see me going all gooey over Annabeth,” he said, and Jason gave him another infuriatingly cryptic look.   
“What do you actually like about her, Perce?”  
“Uh, well, she’s smart, and she knows what she wants, and um, her dress was really pretty at the ball.” He ran out of things to list very quickly.   
Jason raised his brows.   
“You could just as easily be talking about Thalia,” he said and Percy fake gagged, making Jason laugh.   
“I’m serious! I like Reyna because she’s strong and witty and she knows how to get me to admit my feelings and be honest about my weaknesses, but I also like her because, damn, have you seen her arms? She could probably bench press a train carriage without breaking a sweat, and her nose crinkles when she laughs, and my heart feels like it’s going to explode when she holds my hand.”   
Jason was still going at this point, but Percy had stopped listening. Jason was… really into her. And he expected Percy to be the same level of interested in Annabeth? Well, her hair was nice. Long and curly and yellow, like, uh, sunshine? Sunshine was good. He’d tell her that when they went on their walk. 

After a while, Jason started trailing into silence and nodding off, so Percy decided it was time to get to bed himself. As he was crossing the main hall to his family’s wing, he saw Nico walking from the entrance. What was he doing out so late? Certainly not on a date, right? It was too early in the season, and way too late at night. Dates and courting outings only started tomorrow.   
Nico stiffened when he saw Percy and tried to scurry away, but Percy decided now was as good as ever to confront him.   
“Nico!”  
Nico looked like an animal caught in a trap. He stood silently as Percy walked closer to him, not relaxing in the slightest.   
“What is going on with you?”  
“What are you talking about?” Nico didn’t meet his eye.   
“Look, if you want to court Annabeth, just do it! Stop constantly trying to be better than me and just do something!”  
Nico gave him an absolutely scathing look.   
“Of course you wouldn’t understand,” he said, and looked back at the ground.   
“Stop acting like I’m so beneath you!” Percy stepped closer, almost without thinking about it. Nico smelled like rain. He was just a step away from Percy, hair damp with what he assumed was evening dew. He looked much nicer in the soft lights of the hall than the bright dining room.   
“Just leave me alone!”   
Nico broke his weird haze by stomping off, leaving Percy alone with the strangest thoughts swirling around his head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i said I'd make them longer and I had to hold myself back from making this chapter 3k but I stopped half way and ended it at a good spot so yeah the next chapter should be ready soon


	7. Chapter 7

Percy glady threw himself into stressing about his walk with Annabeth instead of whatever the hell had been going on in his head after the dinner. They’d agreed to meet at the communal gardens at noon, and Percy couldn’t remember if they’d agreed to go fully casual. His memory told him yes, but his anxiety told him he’d look like an idiot in shorts. So he wore what he hoped could be interpreted as a relaxed formal or a tasteful casual. It was a gamble, one that he had picked up from Rachel, who pulled it off almost every time they had an event. 

Annabeth was seemingly on board with his half formal half casual, not wearing a gown or a suit but just a nice ensemble of clearly Parthenian clothes. Her shawl shimmered in the sun, somehow catching the light and not reflecting it, which was nice, since otherwise it would have given him a headache.   
“Percy,” she said, smiling and holding out her arm. It took him a minute to figure out what exactly she wanted, and he settled on sticking out his elbow for her to hold onto. He offered her a smile in return.   
“Annabeth, hi.”  
There was a slight rustle behind them, and Percy turned to see a woman with a parasol following them at a small distance.   
“My mom insisted the chaperone should be someone she knew, not just some random worker,” Annabeth said, a look on her face that made Percy believe she was parroting her mother's words and not saying what she actually thought. 

“You uh, you look nice,” he said, mentally kicking himself. He should have said the sunshine thing!  
Annabeth tilted her head, seeming to study his face for a moment.   
“You look good as well. You said you wanted to get to know each other?”  
Percy nodded, and tried to think of what to ask first.   
“You have a brother, right? Any other siblings?”  
“No, no other siblings, just Malcolm and I. And before you ask, yes, I’m heir, but Malcolm and I agreed that if I get the chance to rule in another kingdom he will take my place. I’m much more interested in trying to fix the problems in the empire with the benefit of an outsiders perspective.”  
She’d gotten more and more into her speech as she carried on, showing an enthusiastic, lighter side that he hadn’t seen before. She reminded him of Thalia, just a bit. They were both so passionate about the changes they would make once they were in charge.   
“And you, what’s your position with the whole heirdom thing?”   
Oh, now there was the question he’d been dreading.   
“Well, I’m the eldest, and I don’t think my siblings want to be heir, I mean, I don’t know, but it’s just a big thing? And if Estelle is heir it means she’s obligated to have kids and I just don’t want that pressure on my little sister-”  
Annabeth made a noise next to him, and at first he thought it was because she was annoyed with him.  
“That’s the thing though! If you’re a girl and you want to be heir, you’re pretty much agreeing to get pregnant a bunch, and if you marry another royal you’re either expected to do the same or let him get someone else pregnant! Which, you know, could be an agreement between you, but still! What would happen if I wanted to be heir but I didn’t want kids? Or if I couldn’t have them? I mean, look at how Queen Hestia is treated, no one takes her seriously because they think she’ll have to merge her kingdom if she doesn’t have a baby soon, it’s gross!”  
Annabeth was now in full swing, waving her arms around as she ranted. It was intimidating and kind of cool. At least he wasn’t the only one who thought the heir stuff was overwhelming. But Annabeth wasn’t done.   
“When I’m in charge, I’m going to try to abolish heirdom! Make a real change. I mean, the monarchy is flawed, don’t you think?”  
Percy assumed his face was a little shocked, because Annabeth started to backtrack.   
“I mean, don’t take me too seriously, if I were queen of your kingdom I wouldn’t be burning it to the ground or anything,” she said nervously.   
“I’ve just never heard someone who agreed with me on the whole heirs thing,” Percy mumbled, still admittedly a bit surprised by the revolutionary talk.   
“You don’t want kids either?” 

Oh, now there was a question.   
“Well, I mean, maybe, I don’t know, I’m just not sure about the whole… thing?”  
Annabeth frowned.   
“It’s not you’d be the one getting pregnant, I guess having a pregnant lover is a task, you’d have to help her, obviously, but…”   
He needed to get them away from this absolute minefield of a topic. He did the first thing he could think of.   
“I got you a courting gift,” he said lamely, holding out the necklace. It was Paphian, but the shells were from the beaches in Helike and the cord was woven from Helikan horsehair. He just hoped she liked it.   
“Oh, thank you Percy! It’s lovely.” She motioned for him to put it around her neck, which he did, with minimal fumbling.   
“I actually have something for you too,” she said, pulling out a blue wad of fabric from her pocket.   
“It’s sort of like a sash, or a scarf, but my mom said Helike robes have a fabric belt so I thought you might like it for the next ball.”  
It was pretty, for sure. It would match nicely with his formal wear, and it reminded him of the ocean. It was very thoughtful.   
“Thanks! Its um, very well made,” he said, and Annabeth smiled.   
“Here, it’s chilly, why don’t I put it around your neck?”   
Annabeth stepped closer, winding the soft fabric over his shoulders. She was really close to him. She was looking up at him, and he could see her eyes, not light blue as he assumed but actually a pale grey. There was a tense moment, and then she just stepped back, patted his shirt, and said: “there we go.”

“That’s the part where you kiss her!”  
Jason was convinced that the courting outing was a disaster. Percy thought it went alright.   
“Have you kissed Reyna then?”  
That got him.   
“Well, I mean, on the hand, and she kissed my cheek when I gave her the dagger, but she didn’t stand staring into my eyes an inch away from my face!”  
“So she liked the dagger?”  
“Stop avoiding the question!”  
Percy couldn’t help but roll his eyes.   
“Look, it’s not like she kissed me either, and we walked for like an hour after that and it wasn’t awkward at all, so clearly this is a you problem, Jace,” he said, watching Jason turn a bit red.  
“You just wanna kiss Reyna, don’t you?” he teased.   
“Shut up.”  
“You doooo!”  
“You’re such a child.”  
“And you’re a sap!”   
Jason threw a shoe, which he dodged with a laugh. 

The rest of the week went by similarly, but Annabeth planned most of their dates considering she was the one with the plan. Percy felt that he should have been at least a little jealous that Annabeth was courting other prospects to find her right match both personality and politically wise, but he honestly just felt excited for her. After hearing her ramble for ages about how prepared she had been and how much research she did on the introductees was just so endearing, he just hoped it was as cool as she expected. He’d even tried to court some of the others himself, but the only success was Drew, and they’d just ended up swapping stories about their dumb friends and annoying siblings, or complaining about certain princes that acted all high and mighty.   
It was a good week. It was a bit of rest from the chaotic first few days. Percy actually questioned who thought that set up was a good idea, but whatever. It was nice.   
He hoped his luck was turning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ugh honestly this chapter did not flow well for me but the worst is behind me! i have some solid scenes written so buckle up!  
> yes I know I said longer chapters but this dragged on so long already, next time, I promise


	8. Chapter 8

The next ball came too fast and too slow, after both too many and too few dates, and Percy was much more excited for this one than the first. Here, all the so-called “prospects” would attend, which included previously introduced princes and princesses. Which would mean Piper was going to be there, and he’d finally be able to introduce Jason to his second favourite Paphian princess (not that he’d ever rank them against each other). 

Once again, he and Jason were dressed up in fancy robes, this time slightly less adorned with every possible shiny, kingdom specific item. Percy decided to include the sash Annabeth had given him, draped around his middle like a belt and shimmering like real water. Thalia was there again, less to help and more to complain that she wouldn’t be going.  
“It’s so dull back here, Jace, all of you will be dancing and flirting and I’ll be stuck all alone, again!”  
Jason, who apparently “got this a lot”, didn’t even look up from the shoe he was lacing up and said, “Well, next time, consider your social life before you make political arrangements with foreign blonds,” to which Thalia replied by swatting him behind the ear playfully. When she was in a good mood, Percy often wished he also had an older sister. 

Piper arrived late, with Drew in tow, as expected. The Peitho family rarely missed an opportunity to make an entrance, which she certainly did. Percy and Jason had already gravitated to Reyna and Frank by this time, waiting a beat before starting the next round of introductions and invitations.  
Aforementioned Piper made a beeline for Percy, trying not to trip over her mixture of robes and suit, dripping with seashells and pearls and looking stunning and absolutely livid at the fact that she was wearing it.  
“Percy!”  
“Piper!”  
Lovingly nicknamed “chaos incarnate” while they were in Paphos together, Percy felt a lot better now that she was here to navigate this stupid heirdom, courting, stupidly-pretty-di-angelo-prince debacle with him.  
As he turned to introduce her, he noticed Jason and Reyna’s gazes flickering from her to each other with expressions he couldn’t even begin to decode. Maybe Reyna was jealous that Jason would have a new prospect to court?  
“Everyone, this is Piper Peitho of Paphos,” he started, and Piper snickered and whispered something like “Say that five times fast,” to him. He grinned and carried on, gesturing to the rest of the group.  
“Piper, this is Jason Grace, Frank Stratios, and Reyna Ramírez-Arellano. If I can find Annabeth, I’ll introduce you too,” he said, craning his neck to try to find her. No luck.  
“So good to-”  
“A pleasure-”  
Reyna and Jason were practically falling over each other to try to greet Piper, and Percy decided then and there that he would ignore… whatever that was, for the rest of the evening. 

Once Piper and Percy had a second to breathe, as in Annabeth swooped in and made a point of introducing and reintroducing Reyna and Jason into as many groups as possible, she confided that she and Annabeth had actually already met, and discussed him, apparently.  
“It’s so cute that you two are taking it slow! I’d want to kiss my date the minute I had a chance, if I were you and she was as sweet as Annabeth is,” she gushed, and Percy felt himself go red. He hadn’t thought about kissing Annabeth since Jason grilled him on it.  
“Yeah, Pipes, you know me, very shy,” he joked, and followed it immediately with “but, yeah, we’re, uh, taking it slow.”  
Thankfully she was distracted by one of the introduction that Percy hadn’t met yet, Leo Valdez from Polyphron.  
“He’s Silena’s finacé’s younger brother and my best friend, like, ever, so be nice!” she sing-songed as she walked towards Reyna and Jason (always those two?), who, once they spotted her, seemed to push into each others space and puff up like birds. Idiots. 

“Uh, hi,” Leo said awkwardly, looking a little intimidated. He was a considerable bit shorter than Percy, to be fair.  
“Hey man,” Percy said back, a little lamely. A certain infuriating Prince had entered his vision, dancing with that Delian blond, who he had learned was Will Solace. Near him was his older sister, almost-dancing with a girl who he vaguely recognised as Queen Artemis’ ward.  
Apparently, his distraction was noticed as Leo sighed next to him.  
“You too, huh?” he said, gesturing to the two di Angelos who had danced their way in front of them.  
“Princess Bianca is the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen and I can’t seem to court her,” he continued, looking insanely down.  
Percy scoffed.  
“She doesn’t have a single suitor, she just hangs around that girl, what’s her name?”  
Leo gave him a strange look, but answered.  
“Zoë Nightshade.”  
“Yeah, her. Ever since the inter-estate feast they’ve been together non-stop, she wouldn’t have time to meet suitors,” he continued, and Leo gave him another Look, just like the one Jason gave him that night on the balcony.  
“Will people ever stop looking at me like that?” he mumbled, making Leo laugh.  
There was an awkward pause, and Percy blurted the first thing he could think of.  
“Prince Nico really has a thing for blondes, huh?”  
“I guess, Will is blond, sure.”  
It was Percy’s turn to give him a weird look.  
“And Annabeth? He’s been glaring at me and her whenever we’re together, getting between us,” he said, and Leo looked almost pained.  
“Sure,” was all he said. 

Later, this time in Percy’s room, he and Jason were having another courting-related venting session, as was par for the course at this point.  
“He was so weird about it too? He just looked at me, the way you do when you’re being extra annoying,” he groaned, and Jason, that jerk, was completely ignoring him.  
“Jason? Jay? Jace? Earth to blondie!”  
Jason looked rightfully embarrassed, but he was a lost cause.  
“Alright, what’s eating you? Let me guess, something with Reyna? Piper? Both of them?”  
Jason just nodded, and Percy waved his hand like, go on.  
“I’ve been counting Reyna and it’s been going so well, and now Piper, she’s amazing too and we’re going for a walk tomorrow and she’s just… they’re both so… but Reyna likes Piper too!”  
“That’s great! If you make one of them queen and one as a lover, and they already get along, well, problem solved, right?”  
Jason was about to give him a Look, he could sense it, so he butt in before he had the chance.  
“Stop looking at me funny and explain yourself! What am I missing here!”  
Jason looked almost sympathetic, the bastard.  
“Reyna wants to court Piper, so we’re competing. Honestly, you’re so dense-”  
“Wait, wait, Reyna? Wants to court Piper? That’s… they can’t…”  
“Reyna isn’t an heir. Piper isn’t an heir. Neither of them need to have kids to carry on the heirdom. Ergo, no man needed,” he explained, slightly miserable. Percy wanted to feel sorry for him, but his mind was moving a mile a minute.  
Of course. Of course. How had he forgotten? He was so wrapped up in the idea of having the produce heirs and find a queen that he’d forgotten that non-heirs didn’t have that kind of pressure. In fact, even heirs who just took lovers that would result in children could have.... That…  
Nico wasn’t an heir. Will Solace wasn’t an heir. They…  
They were courting.  
Why did that make him feel like a train carriage landed on his chest?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bonjour


	9. Chapter 9

It was starting to feel very repetitive. Another feast, this time, luckily, with the Peitho family, along with the Gardiner family and Queen Hestia.   
Mainly he was excited to see Silena. 

He ended up in a circle with the Peitho princesses, Jason and Thalia, which was pretty much the best group of people he could imagine. Both Drew and Piper seemed to be aggressively out-flirting each other at Jason, who was trying, and failing, to flirt back at Piper and let Drew down gently.   
“So Percy, any luck with your courting?” Silena asked, nudging him in the side.   
His sigh was apparently very amusing.   
“That bad, huh?” she said, trying not to laugh (she failed).  
“It’s just Annabeth for now… I’m just so bad at this and she’s so good at it, and she’s courting Nico as well and he’s so good at it,” he rambled.   
Silena looked surprised.   
“Oh? I didn’t know he was courting anyone but the Solace prince,” she said offhandedly, unknowingly stabbing Percy in the stomach with some weird emotion.   
He caught sight of the di Angelo siblings, sitting by themselves. Nico looked borderline miserable. 

The next day, as per usual, he and Annabeth took a chaperoned walk around the grounds, and the topic of heirs came up. It couldn’t seem to leave him alone.   
“-anyway, the whole concept is flawed, don’t you think?”  
Percy shrugged.   
“Not much I can do about it. At least if I’m heir, Tyson won’t have to deal with this, least of all Estelle. I can’t imagine the kind of pressure female heirs are under,” he said, earning him a very soft look from Annabeth. She quickly returned to her rant.   
“Like I said, it’s gross. Like, what if I’m infertile? Or don’t like men? What then? I can’t be an heir? Queen Artemis had to merge Delios with Pythia so that she and King Apollo could be co-rulers, all because she didn’t want kids! Now, she has her ward, but they’re saying she won’t be able to make her a princess, let alone an heir, just because she’s not blood!”  
Percy nodded along, feeling a little knot in his stomach grow tighter and tighter.   
“Well, it sucks, but there’s not really anything we can do,” he said, and pulled out his latest courting gift, a seashell brooch set with quartz and coral.   
“Oh Percy, this is beautiful,” she said, pinning it to her shawl but not dropping her determined gaze.   
“What if there was something we could do?” she asked, a little cryptically, but didn’t expand on it. Their time was up, and her next suitor, Travis Noumios, was waiting for her with his chaperone. 

As he walked back to his family’s estate, he spotted the telltale green and yellow robes of the Solace prince, Will, walking with someone. He doubled back, purely curious, he told himself, and saw Nico walking alongside him, talking animatedly, looking happier than he’d ever seen him before.   
Feeling terrible and not knowing why, he booked it back to his room, almost tripping up the stairs as he went. He leant against the door, panting, too many thought-soups sloshing around it his brain. Annabeth, heirs, Nico, children, non-heirs, Nico, Will, courting, Nico, Nico, Nico?   
Stupid Prince couldn’t even leave him alone in his own head.   
He was just jealous of the freedom Nico had, as a non-heir, right? He wished he could just court someone because he liked them, not for a good political or trade or, yuck, fertile match.   
He tied to focus on Annabeth.   
Jason told him he should probably kiss her sometime soon, or else she might think he wasn’t interested. Even Piper had egged him on, telling him to go for it.   
He tried to imagine it. The next walk they went on, he’d give her a necklace or an earring or a headpiece or something, and then, when he would help her put it on, he’d lean in, like she did the first time. Maybe touch her face or something, he’d seen couples kissing like that before. Maybe play with her hair? Feel how soft and silky it was against his palms, run his hand through it- no, Annabeth had curly hair, that wasn’t even close to how it would feel! Touch her cheek, then? Very smooth, soft… that five o’clock shadow stubble that he had, sharp jawline, dark- no! Annabeth didn’t have stubble? His mind kept leading him somewhere else, somewhere he didn’t need to be.   
Back to the walk. Annabeth in front of him. He leans in. Close his eyes. Place a hand on the chin, kiss softly, he could almost smell the stupid perfume Nico wore when they were in the train, taste the olives he’d been eating-   
This was not working in his favour. Now all he could think about was kissing Nico. He let himself flop dramatically onto his bed, feeling several batches of irritating emotions, mixed up like currents.   
Did he like Nico? Did it matter? He’d have to take a lover if he married Nico, if Nico even liked him, which he didn’t. Nico liked his blondes, Will and Annabeth and Percy was nothing like them, and Nico hated him since he first laid eyes on him! 

His wallowing extended all the way to the next ball, which would include every non-married prince and princess, including Thalia, which she was very excited about. Halfway through getting ready, she had burst into Jason’s room, fully dressed up and looking lovely (and a little scary) and badgered them until they were ready too.   
The moment he spotted Charles and Silena, he practically sprinted toward them. They were, besides his own parents, his favourite couple.   
“When’s the wedding them, lovebirds?” he teased, and Charles gave him a little pat on the shoulder. Silena, who had already seen him just a few days ago, still went in for a tight hug, resulting in a great clinking of beaded fabric against beaded fabric. Coastal kingdoms went buck wild for shells.   
“Oh, soon enough,” she said warmly, then poked Charles and gestured over to when Jason was floundering.   
“Look Charlie, Drew and Pipes are at it again,” she giggled. Percy looked over to Jason, where Drew and Piper were, in fact, at it again. One on each side, talking dramatically and making eyes at him. Piper seemed playful, but Drew seemed entirely serious about it.   
“It’s so unnecessary, really, Drew’s got half of Paphos at her feet, but she insists the five lovesick puppies that follow her around “don’t like her as a person”, as if they don’t hang off of every word she says and remember every detail about her,” Silena said, with that fond exasperation Percy had come to know as ‘big sister tone’.   
Charles just watched with an amused expression, catching Percy’s gaze with a smile. Silent but gentle, Silena called him. Percy thought he was possibly the best financé possible.  
“And she’s got extra competition, especially since Bellona’s daughter seems to have teamed up with Pipes, which is interesting for sure. No harm in having that kind of strategic mind, I guess, courting is its own kind of battle,” she carried on, still hanging on Charles’ arm as she surveyed Jason’s disaster cluster of princesses. 

Just when he thought the night was going well, Nico and Will Solace decided to sway into view, chatting and dancing slightly.   
“Oh, there’s the golden couple again, would it kill that Solace prince to let Nico stand on his own for a moment? He won’t fly away,” Percy grumbled, and Silena and Charles shared amused glances. Easy for them, since they had their love life sorted and happy.   
He caught sight of a shimmery flash headed his way, no doubt Annabeth, but Nico intercepted her and soon they were dancing their way to the other side of the hall. Percy rolled his eyes.   
“Typical! Right as Annabeth is coming to talk to me, he swoops in and steers her away. Like it’s not enough he has Will, he has to try to take Annabeth as well!”  
Charles frowned, turning to Silena.   
“Didn’t Reyna get Drew to dance with her so she would give Jason a moment with Piper?”  
Silena just shook her head and smiled.   
“Charlie, let them work this out on their own. Once he comes round, I’m sure Percy will figure it out. He’s not as dumb as he thinks,” she finished with a wink, before she and Charlie were headed to another group, closer to them in age. 

Percy stood on his own for a bit, feeling peeved. Jason and Piper were laughing at something in one corner, Reyna and Drew were engaged in the most passive-aggressive dance possible. He spotted Thalia, along with Luke, chatting away to a group of introductees. They made a good team, something he later told Jason. 

They were sitting on Percy’s balcony again, Percy had finished his usual Nico rant, and finished with, “But I saw Thalia and Luke at the end there, they were fantastic! The dance was insane, the way they moved?”  
Jason nodded.   
“They’ve been practising. Hera said dance is a great way to build trust with a partner.”  
“I hope they get married soon,” Percy said, and Jason nodded again, “they’ll make such a good team, ruling together.”  
There was a pause.   
“What about you and Piper, hey, I saw how you two hit it off this time,” he said, delighting in the way Jason turned beet red.   
“Yeah, uh, she and Reyna have been really great, very civil. They’ve actually been chaperoning each other, and one time they had me chaperone their walk,” he said, to the ground.   
“What? That’s so counterproductive! Having a rival suitor chaperone?”  
Jason turned even more red, if it were possible.   
“That’s the thing, it seems like they’re not even chaperones anymore, it’s like…it’s like we’re all courting at once,” he finished, almost mumbling.   
As if this stupid thing couldn’t get more complicated.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i fucked up my own timeline a bit but y'all don't know that so uh enjoy?


	10. Chapter 10

At the third feast, the Noumios family, the Valdez family and the Baccus family joined them at their estate’s dining hall. According to Jason, Thalia and Luke were going to make it official, and he was going to be named heir, before they announced it officially at the final feast.  
And, well, halfway through dinner Thalia and Luke moved to the announcement podium and declared themselves engaged and ready to take over from King Hermes when he decided to step down.  
“And of course, my brother Jason will take my place as heir to the Olympian throne,” she finished, nodding to Jason.

Everyone went back to eating, except the few who went to speak with the newly engaged. Percy was mingling surprisingly well, chatting with Leo and Jason. The middle Valdez child, Nyssa, joined them after interrogating Thalia for ten minutes, and immediately ruffled Leo’s hair.  
“Stop pouting!”  
“But, ugh, just look at her! She’s had like, four helpings and she doesn’t even look tired! She must do some badass training every day to eat that much! She’s so…”  
Nyssa poked him in the stomach.  
“Doofus. You’ve got a suitor back home, like me. Stop mooning over the princesses you can’t have,” she chided. Percy desperately wished he had a big sister to go to for courting advice. Almost everyone had one and he was starting to feel a little jealous.  
Nyssa turned her attention to Jason and Percy, propping up her head on her hands, elbows resting on her thighs.  
“What about you two? I heard you’ve been _busy_ ,” she said, emphasising the last word with a pointed look at Jason, who flushed.  
“Ah-ha! It’s true then, those two teamed up so they’d have you to themselves. Pretty smart, know thy enemy and all that.” Before Jason could respond, she narrowed in on Percy.  
“And you, got someone back home?”  
Percy shook his head, unfortunate timing leaving him furiously chewing a piece of bread so he could defend himself. She pushed on before he could swallow.  
“Oh! You’d think so, the way you’ve been acting. Or,” she smiled rakishly, “you’re head over heels for princess Annabeth. Not that I blame you,” she finished, and popped a grape into her mouth.  
“I’m not- I just- she’s lovely, and a very smart match. And I don’t need to settle on a suitor just yet, I’ve only just been introduced,” he spluttered, feeling the tell-tale burn of swallowing too much bread without chewing it enough. Princess Nyssa just laughed, ruffled Leo’s hair again, and bounced up to talk to another group.  
Leo turned to Jason, after trying to ‘fix’ his hair. He just ended up scruffing it up in a different direction.  
“You’ve got girls teaming up to court you?” he asked, eyes a little wide. Percy felt like laughing, thinking about the disaster that was Jason Grace and the terrifying duo of Piper and Reyna, hardly falling over themselves for him. Jason, who had just returned to his usual shade, turned red again.  
“They’ve been keeping other suitors away from me at the dance, I suppose. And chaperoning each other. Maybe they think they’re evenly matched,” he said, no, mumbled into his forkful of salad, and Leo laughed.

Percy, zoning out from the rapid-fire back and forth that had sprung up between Jason and Leo, soon found himself staring at the di Angelo siblings, sitting together at a bench, technically part of a group of excited chatter since Luke and Thalia were seated there, but looking very much alone.  
Percy felt a pang of sympathy, then bitterly thought, _of course, he’s moping because neither of his blonde conquests are here_. He turned back to his plate, feeling a strange cocktail of… something in his chest. Maybe it was the bread.

The evening came to a gentle close, with every family slowly filing out until only the host estate was left. The Graces invited his parents and the di Angelos to some kind of final drinks of the night, Thalia and Bianca being surreptitiously herded along, leaving Jason, Percy and Nico alone in the hall, finishing final bites and dusting off crumbs. Jason, for some unknown, sadistic reason, bolted while Percy wasn’t looking, and for a tense moment, it was just him and Nico, sitting on opposite sides of the room. Nico had a book, not too different from the one on the train, open on his lap. He looked up, as if he suddenly realized everyone had left, and his eyes landed on Percy.  
Even from a distance, Percy knew that look.

He tried to look nonchalant, walking his way over, as if he was on his way out and just noticed Nico, but he tripped over a particularly low bench and stumbled into Nico’s personal space.  
Nico, still looking a bit off, managed to shoot his an unimpressed eyebrow raise, but Percy figured he deserved it.  
“Uh- um- I was- Are you alright?” he stuttered out, crouched next to the bench, Nico’s book now firmly closed and beside him. Nico opened and closed his mouth, looking thrown, and reminding Percy fondly of a fish. Fondly? No, just… familiarly. Fish were cool.  
Nico seemed to relax and give up in one breath, his posture slumping.  
“Not really. How could you tell?”  
Now Percy was thrown. He wasn’t sure exactly what he was expecting, he’d kind of waltzed over without a plan, but it wasn't this.  
Nico was staring at his expectantly.  
Oh right, he asked a question.  
“Er, well, I saw you just now and you look exactly how my m- how Queen Sally says I look when I’m souping.”  
“Souping?”  
Percy mentally slapped himself. God this was a nightmare, one embarrassing slip after the other.  
“Y’know, like stewing?” he tried, feeling the heat in his cheeks, “Only, soup. I don’t really like soup, so my mo- Queen- yeah, no, my mum says when I get too deep in my own head it’s like wading through a whole bunch of different flavoured soup, and it’s all bad.”  
There was more to that particular household metaphor, including spoon and forks and bread and salt, but he wasn’t going to give more detail than strictly necessary. This was already too much personal chatter that Nico probably didn’t want to hear.  
There was an unknown emotion on his face, to be sure, but Percy wasn’t sure it was annoyance.  
“Queen Persephone says the mind is a garden that needs tending. Says too many bad thoughts are like weeds.”  
His voice was quiet, though Percy could see a teeny, tiny smile. The thought that he was cheering Nico up made his chest a little tight, and a swoop in his stomach, like when the boat would make a sharp drop from a tall wave. He decided he’d deal with that later.  
Nico made a small gesture, and Percy took it as an invitation to sit, so he did.

“That’s much more poetic than soup,” he said, after a possibly tense pause, and Nico actually laughed.  
“Yes, she’s quite poetic in that sense, she always is. She actually tends some of the garden back home, in Asphodel. Says the gardeners will only mess things up,” he continued softly.  
“I can’t imagine mu- Queen Sally tending a garden, that’s for sure. She was pretty firm on not getting nurses and tutors for me and my siblings, though. I guess we’re her garden.”  
Percy was pretty damn pleased with that little comparison, but Nico seemed to dull a bit.  
“You don’t have to call her Queen Sally, you know, you can just call her your mum. She is your mum, after all,” he said, and when Percy didn’t immediately respond, he followed with a panicked, “She is your mum, right? I didn’t mess this up did I? It’s the Graces that-”  
Percy laughed a bit at his panic, feeling sheepish.  
“No, no, she’s my mum. Her and my dad were lucky in that way, y’know, being in love and that.”  
Nico was biting at his lip, looking troubled again. With a pang of guilt, Percy remembered that Hades’ lover and the current Queen had been on good terms, before she died. That was some of the little news that had reached them about the di Angelos. He took a shot in the dark and said, before he could let his brain catch up, “I heard about what happened.”  
Nico swallowed, audibly.  
“I’m sure you did.”  
That was the end of that conversation.

“So, liking it so far? I didn’t hype it up like Paphos, so you can’t be mad at me if it didn’t live up to expectations,” Percy tried, after another awkward, heavy silence. Nico seemed relieved, and tacked onto the new subject quickly. They spoke about their rooms, the dances, the outfits, (Nico seemed reluctant to admit it, but once Percy loudly declared that dressing up was the most fun he’d had at the social season, Nico laughed along and told him about how Bianca braided actual rubies into his hair on the first night, and how stunning they had looked, “hurt when they hit my forehead though, and -Percy, don’t laugh!- they were sharp!”) and finally, the courting.  
“Blondes, hey?” Percy said, trying to keep his tone light.  
“Can say the same for you,” Nico quipped back, but Percy could hear the strain in his voice. He felt a little bad.  
“Look, if you really want to court Annabeth, just do it. You act so strange around her, just ask her. I’ll admit, I don’t stand a chance if you go for it, but you should make up your mind,” he said, trying to slip in a jokey tone. It didn’t work too well.  
“Leave it alone, Perseus,” Nico said, looking like a mini storm cloud. Percy felt his past annoyance bubble up again.  
“Oh, it’s Perseus again? Like we didn’t just talk for an hour, just like that?”  
Nico stiffened visibly.  
“We’re not friends, this doesn’t make us close,” he said sharply, and Percy felt like boiling over.  
“Oh, you’ve made that clear enough! Look, I don’t know what I did to piss you off, I’ve tried being nice, I can’t help it if Annabeth is courting me, it’s stupid to be upset about! You have Will, is that not enough?”  
Nico, in a terrifying flash of anger, and to Percy’s surprise, a cracking voice, leap up and not-quite-yelled, “No! It’s- you’re- Leave me alone!”  
And then he stormed off.

Percy felt… yeah. He felt. That covered it thoroughly. He was lying in bed, fully clothed, on top of the duvet, souping. Things were a whirlwind, a disaster, and they were also great, they were okay, they were… they were happening. Jason was Olympus’ heir, Thalia was engaged, Nico hated him, all in all, nothing unexpected. Prince Leo and his sister were nice, but then again, having met Charles, he expected nice siblings.  
He groaned into his pillow, his eyes burning a little as he blinked.  
Tomorrow was a new day. A new walk with Annabeth. He had a gift for her, a gorgeous sea-bird quill, silver-tipped, and a set of colourful inks from the coastal flower dyes. Maybe he’d bring up Queendom to her. She seemed interested, she was smart, she wanted to influence a foreign nation, and he liked the way she thought. He’d deal with any other stuff later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> things get worse before they get better :) trust the process :)

**Author's Note:**

> my Tumblr: https://librarian-alexandria.tumblr.com
> 
> im trying


End file.
